


Yachi Saves the Gay—I Mean Day

by SeraphOfTheEndMySuffering



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: ALL THE GAY, Awkwardness, Fluff, Gay, M/M, Mutual Pining, first kisses and shit, oblivious little crows, poor yachi, the first years all care about each other a lot, they just don’t like admitting it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-12
Updated: 2018-05-15
Packaged: 2019-03-30 09:09:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13948380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeraphOfTheEndMySuffering/pseuds/SeraphOfTheEndMySuffering
Summary: “Wait, so you two are trying to get Hinata and Kageyama together?"“Yep!”“Watching those two pining over each other all the time is irritating; it has to stop.”“Not to mention they’ve both been so distracted that they can’t stop messing up at practice lately…”“Okay then, I guess I’ll help you!”______“Hold on...y-you two are trying to get Yamaguchi and Tsukishima together?”“Uh-huh. Those two could not be more obvious if they tried yet they’re still so oblivious. It’s pissing me off.”“And who knows! Maybe Saltyshima will be nicer if he’s happier. And if not then at least Yamaguchi will be happy!”“So, are you gonna help or not?”“Um...sure…”Yachi finds herself in an awkward position when her friends enlist her help in setting each other up.





	1. Problems at Practice

**Author's Note:**

> I have never written for any of these characters before so wish me luck.

 If there was one thing to know about Hitoka Yachi, it’s that she was very observant. Over time she’d learned to pay careful attention to each of the volleyball players and how they work, and use those observations to help them. Lately, though, there’s been a problem on court she just couldn’t figure out the root of.

  “What’s wrong Hinata? Forget how to hit a ball?” Tsukishima remarked after the sixteenth consecutive time the shorter boy failed to land a hit.

  “Huh? It’s Bakageyama’s fault! That toss didn’t go anywhere near me!” Hinata yelled back defensively.

  “Hey! I might have screwed up that last one but the one before it was your fault! You weren’t even looking at the ball.” Kageyama accused.

  “Yeah well...you suck.” Hinata pouted, temporarily unable to think of a comeback.

  For whatever reason, the freak duo had been completely off their game the past few practices. Yachi tried hard to figure out what was going on with them, but to no avail. They both kept taking their eyes off the ball, but she had no clue why. Kageyama was surprisingly yelling at Hinata _less_ than usual, even though the orange-haired teen was messing up uncharacteristically frequently. Hinata was also acting a lot weirder around Kageyama, never wanting to look him in the eyes or make any sort of physical contact with him.

   _Maybe they got in another fight and aren’t sure how to make up?_ She considered. That would explain why they weren’t talking, and why they had such a hard time working together. Yachi was so intent on watching Hinata and Kageyama, it startled her when she heard a loud

   _Smack!_

Followed by Daichi shouting, “crap, are you okay Tsukishima?!” and Yamaguchi simply screaming “Ah! Tsukki!”

  Yachi looked over to see the tall blond on the floor, his glasses slightly skewed and big red mark on his face. From the looks of it (and the sound) he got hit pretty hard. After looking at where everyone was standing in the court, Yachi could tell that he’d taken one of Sugawara’s spikes to the face. _At least Asahi wasn’t the one hitting._

  “Hey, I keep telling you first years _not_ to receive with your faces! What the hell happened?” Nishinoya questioned, standing over Tsukishima and shaking his head disapprovingly.

  “I just got distracted for a moment. It’s no big deal.” Tsukishima sighed, getting to his feet and fixing his glasses.

  “Distracted? By what?” Noya asked.

  Tsukki’s eyes seemed to widen, even if only for a second, and Yachi didn’t miss the way he glanced off to his side before blushing ever so slightly and stating, “nothing.”

  Once Sugawara finished apologizing for nailing his poor underclassmen in the face, and Yamaguchi stopped panicking over whether or not Tsukki would be okay, practice went back to normal. Yachi wondered what it was that had the most focused of all the first years so distracted that he didn’t notice the volleyball coming straight at his face. She thought back to where he’d been looking, and tried to think of what might have been there. _If I remember correctly…_ she mused, _wasn’t Yamaguchi standing there?_

That couldn’t have been it, could it? Of course she knew that the two friends were always watching each other and having each other’s backs, but that was normally only when they were playing. Why would Tsukishima be staring at Yamaguchi if the latter of the two hadn’t been doing anything but standing there? Especially while practicing receives.

  Yachi had all the dots, that was for sure, but she couldn’t connect them. Like the other first years, she was a little dense about these kinds of things, and it never occurred to her how simple the answer to everyone’s playing problems was—at least, not on her own.

  When practice was over, and she was getting ready to head home, Yachi was stopped by two unexpected teammates. “Hi Tsukishima, hi Yamaguchi. Is something the matter?” The poor girl couldn’t help panicking, thinking of multiple bad scenarios including them telling her she couldn’t be their manager, or that someone had died, or that the team was disbanding, or they were going to kill her—

“We need to talk to you about something.” Yamaguchi explained. Yachi calmed down immediately.

  “Oh. Well okay, what is it?” Yachi asked them.

  The two both froze, glancing around to make sure none of the other teammates were around. Yachi wondering why they were acting so cautious and suspicious. _Maybe I was right! Maybe they really are going to kill me! Should I scream? But what if they’re not trying to kill me and I end up freaking them out? Is it worth the risk?_

“It’s about Kageyama and Hinata.” Tsukishima told her. _Oh...?_

“What about them? Are they alright?” Yachi inquired.

  “Other than having a chronic case of stupidity, they’re both fine. Anyways, that’s beside point.” Tsukishima said dismissively, trying to speed the conversation along.

  “Sorry, go on.”

  “I know this probably sounds weird but…” Yamaguchi began to ask.

  “We need you to make those two confess to each other before we lose our minds.” Tsukishima finished for him.

   _Wait...huh!?_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What in the hell possessed me to write this at 2:30 in the morning


	2. A Double Mission

  “Wait, so you two are trying to get Hinata and Kageyama together?"

  “Yep!”

  “Watching those two pining over each other all the time is irritating; it has to stop.”

  “Not to mention they’ve both been so distracted that they can’t stop messing up at practice lately…”

  “Okay then, I guess I’ll help you!”

  Yachi agreed without hesitation. She was confused for a few moments, sure, but everything was making sense now! Hinata and Kageyama kept taking their eyes off the ball because they were staring at _each other_ , and they weren’t talking because they were probably both worried about the other finding out about their crush. Of course Tsukishima would be the first to figure that out.

  “Thank you so much! We’ve really tried everything we can think of.” Yamaguchi seemed relieved by her cooperation.

  “I thought maybe if I kept insulting them then they would try sticking up for each other, but no luck.” Tsukishima sighed.

  “But you already always insulted them, Tsukki.”

  “Well now I had a valid reason, okay?”

  “Haha, okay. Anyways, we’ve already done that, as well as locking them in the supply closet together, sending them flirty texts from each other’s phones, and even convincing Daichi to make them do more ‘team building’ exercises together!” Yamaguchi explained.

   _Wait, the team building idea came from these two? I had no idea._ Yachi was surprised by how in depth the boys had already gone into their plot to get their friends together.

  “Wow, those were pretty much all of the things I could have come up with.” Yachi conceded. “How about I think on it some more, and then we can talk about this after practice tomorrow?” She offered.

  Yamaguchi glanced up at Tsukishima, who nodded, before saying “sure, sounds great!” They all said their goodbyes and headed home after that. That night, Yachi found herself lying awake for hours trying to brainstorm ways to make stubborn, thick-skulled boys acknowledge their feelings for each other. _This is impossible._ Is the only conclusion she ever came to.

* * *

 

 Yachi was so tired the next day, she found herself dozing off every few seconds _—_ even when she was walking. She was practically a zombie as she made her way towards the gym after school, and almost completely missed her name being called.

  “...chi. Yachi! Hey, Yachi-san? Are you alright?” It was Hinata calling, she realized after a few dazed seconds.

  “Yes, ’m fine.” she managed. “Jus’ a lil tired.”

  “Sheesh, I can tell. Were you up too late studying?” Hinata asked.

  “Something like that…” Yachi laughed awkwardly. _Studying cheesy romance tactics to use on you, maybe._

  “Well, sorry to bother you in that case, but we need help.” Kageyama piped up from behind Hinata. When had he gotten there? Yachi had no clue. It wasn’t unlikely that he’d been there the whole time, and she’d just missed him in her sleep-deprived stupor.

  “Don’t be sorry!” Yachi instantly tried to wake herself up and act more peppy. She didn’t want her friend thinking he was a bother! “I’m always happy to help.”

  “Oh. Well, in that case, how much do you know about getting people together?” Kageyama asked.

   _Oh no. Did they find out about the plan to get them to go out? Is that what this is about?_ Yachi worried. _But then wouldn’t they be confessing or at least fighting or something by now?_

“E-Enough, I guess.” she answered, trying to play it safe.

  “Awesome!” Hinata shouted gleefully. “Because we need your help setting two people up.”

   _This must be some joke! Them too?_

“Who, exactly?” she interrogated.

  “Who do you think? Freckles and the beanpole.” Kageyama told her.

  There was no way Yachi heard that right.

  “Hold on...y-you two are trying to get Yamaguchi and Tsukishima together?”

  “Uh-huh. Those two could not be more obvious if they tried yet they’re still so oblivious. It’s pissing me off.”

  “And who knows! Maybe Saltyshima will be nicer if he’s happier. And if not then at least Yamaguchi will be happy!”

  “So, are you gonna help or not?”

  “Um...sure…” Yachi agreed. She tried to keep her composure on the outside, but on the inside she was screaming. So Tsukishima _was_ staring at Yamaguchi the day before. She hadn’t just imagined that.

  Suddenly it hit her just how much pressure she was under. She had just agreed to set up not one, but _two_ couples. And she would have to work on doing both at the same time. As if she wasn’t losing enough sleep already!

  “I need to know something first.” she informed them before they could try to thank her and then walk away.

  “What is it?” Hinata asked enthusiastically.

  “Have you actually tried anything yet to get them to confess?” She sincerely hoped that she _wasn’t_ about to get a list of failed attempts, and that she might have more ideas to work with this time.

  “Nope! But I think I’ve got some great ideas we can try!” Hinata admitted.

   _Oh thank goodness._

“Okay. Let’s go over them now so you can try them out during practice.” Yachi suggested.

  “Sure!” With that, Hinata began spewing out all the insane ideas he had for turning his friends into a couple.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that I'm done with the foundation of the story, I can finally get to the fun part! Whoo!


	3. A New Recruit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yachi inadvertently recruits a couple new members into her quest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long omfg I haven't even edited it yet ugh. I'm but a stressed child with too many advanced classes and I have no free time XD  
> I also have a competition coming up that I gotta prep for soooo you're probably gonna be dealing with more absurdly short chapters for a while. Sorry ^-^;

  “Hinata, please slow down.” Yachi interrupted after nearly five minutes. She was hardly able to make out a single word he said. “Let’s just start with that first one you said, okay? I think with these two it would be best to keep things simple. If we try to be too sneaky, they’ll figure out something’s up.”

  With as little disrespect meant to her friends as possible, Yachi couldn’t quite imagine Hinata or Kageyama using some elaborate plan and outsmarting Yamaguchi or Tsukishima. If they were going to do this subtly, they’d have to do it in the simplest way possible.

  Once they were in the gym and practice started, it was mostly up to Hinata and Kageyama to execute the plan. _Even though Tsukki and Yamaguchi spend a lot of time together, they don’t really make a lot of physical contact. Good thinking on Hinata’s part to see if forcing them together more often might do something._

It was during a simple set and spike drill that Yachi made her move. She glanced at Kageyama to confirm that now was the right time, and he nodded in affirmation. As soon as it was Hinata’s turn to spike, Yachi ‘accidentally’ dropped a ball and kicked it at Kageyama while chasing after it, causing him to ‘accidentally’ toss the ball in the completely wrong direction—towards where the other boys were standing in line. It was then that Hinata ran after it and, again, ‘accidentally’ shoved Yamaguchi, who toppled backwards and fell on top of Tsukishima. Both boys went crashing to the ground, startling everyone who wasn’t in on the situation.

   _“Gak!”_ Tsukishima made a pained sound, since he did take nearly the full force of the fall.

  “Eep! I’m so sorry Tsukki!” Yamaguchi exclaimed. He turned around to he was facing his friend but didn’t get off of him, so he was pretty much just laying on top of him with their faces _way_ too close together.

   _That...worked better than expected._

  “Don’t be. It’s that idiot’s fault.” Tsukki turned to glare at Hinata.

  “Hey! I’m not the one who tossed it wrong!” Hinata pouted.

  “Don’t pin this on me!” Kageyama yelled.

  “A-Actually, it’s my fault!” Yachi piped up. She didn’t understand why Hinata was trying to start something with Kageyama over something they _planned_ to do. “I’m the one who lost control of their ball and almost hit Kageyama. You can be mad at me instead.”

  “Well, if you insist—” Tsukki started to say, but was cut off.

  “Don’t worry about it!” Yamaguchi smiled at Yachi reassuringly. “We could never stay mad you, right Tsukki?”

  Yachi just hardly noticed the sad look that crossed Tsukishima’s face before it morphed into annoyance. “Speak for yourself. And get off of me!” The irritable blond growled, throwing his friend off and standing up.

  Yamaguchi frowned briefly, before shrugging it off and also standing up. _Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything._ Yachi thought dejectedly. _Although, after that, I can say for sure that Tsukishima definitely does have feelings for Yamaguchi._

  When the drill was over and everyone took a water break, Hinata and Kageyama went over to talk to Yachi.

 “Well, that didn’t work. What do we do now?” Hinata asked sadly.

  Yachi shook her head. “No, that worked. At least a little bit. I say we keep it up and continue pushing them together.”

  The boys listened along and nodded in agreement. “Okay then, let’s do this!” They shouted in unison before running back out on court.

  And continue they did. For the rest of practice they took every opportunity to make the friends stay a little too close together. Whether it was by subtly bumping into one of them, or straight up shoving them into each other, Hinata and Kageyama made sure the two weren’t more than an inch apart at all times.

  Unfortunately, such behavior didn’t go unnoticed. At the end of practice, Sugawara approached Yachi and said, “hey, can I talk to you for a minute?”

   _Uh-oh. Now I’ve done it! He’s probably mad that we disrupted practice so many times and is kicking us out!_ Yachi panicked internally. “S-Sure!” she stammered.

  “Do you have any idea what’s going on with the other first years today?” Suga asked. “They’re even more out of it than they were yesterday.”

  “U-Um, well, about that. You see...i-it’s…” Yachi was no good at coming up with lies on the spot like this! What was she supposed to say?

  Suga just chuckled. “You know, you won’t get in trouble for telling me. I might even be able to help you, if you let me.”

  Yachi looked up to see the vice-captain smiling down at her comfortingly. He certainly seemed like the understanding kind of person that she could confide in. So she did—for the most part at least. She left out the part about trying to get Hinata and Kageyama to confess, but let him in on all the details about the plan to get Yamaguchi and Tsukishima together.

  Sugawara nodded along, pursing his lips in thought. Within a minute, he clapped his hands and smiled brightly. “I got it!”

  He ran off and started whispering to Daichi, who looked briefly shocked before whispering back. Yachi could only imagine what the two were talking about. _Are they going to help?_

Yachi got her answer to that question when Daichi called out, “Hey Yamaguchi! Get over here!”

   Yamaguchi dropped the broom he was using and ran over. “What is it?”

  “We have a favor to ask you.” Suga told him.

  “Oh. Okay?” Yamaguchi looked a bit nervous. He didn’t do well with suspense.

  “Tsukishima seems to have a bit of trouble with his receives, so we were wondering if you might stay a little late tonight to help him out.” Daichi told him. _That’s genius!_ “That way you can be practicing your serve too. Sound okay?”

  “Yeah…” Yamaguchi sounded apprehensive in his response.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I just...don’t know if you can get him to agree to it.” Yamaguchi sighed, glancing at his best friend, who was sitting down in the corner instead of helping everyone clean up.

   Sugawara laughed. “Nah. He doesn’t get a choice in the matter. We just wanted to make sure you were up to dealing with him in case he gets all moody.”

  Yamaguchi couldn’t help giggling. “Okay then, I guess we’ll stay a little after!”

  “Thanks.” Suga grinned, ruffling the first year’s hair. “I knew we could count on you!”

  And with that, Suga ran off to inform Tsukishima that he would be staying late tonight.

   _This is great! They’ll be completely stuck alone for at least half an hour, possibly longer._ Yachi was grateful that Sugawara decided to join their cause. _Having the third years on our side could prove to be super helpful._

  It took all the way until Yachi was at home and lying and bed for her to remember something important. _Ah! I was supposed to talk to those two after practice about what to do with Hinata and Kageyama!_ She jolted straight up in bed as the memory hit her. Soon, though, she calmed and laid back down. _I guess it can wait until tomorrow. It might be easier if I can take this one couple at a time, anyways._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will most likely be from Tsukki's point of view instead of Yachi's so...  
> Yay?


	4. Annoying Distractions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Literally an entire chapter about how hopelessly in love Tsukishima is with his annoying ass best friend ft. a very sassy Yams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because insecure pining Tsukki is what I live for

  To say that Tsukishima was suffering would be a gross understatement. He’d had a very long day of trying to keep his pesky feelings in check, and just when he thought it was over, it got even worse. 

_ Curse you, Hinata and Kageyama. And curse you, Sugawara.  _ He thought.  _ How am I supposed to survive an hour alone with this guy?  _

__ The guy in question, one Tadashi Yamaguchi, was currently fiddling awkwardly with a ball and muttering something along the lines of “sorry you got stuck with me…”

_ Tell him to stop being sorry and that you’re happy to be around him.  _ Tsukishima told himself. “Shut up,” was what he said out loud, though. He had a bad habit of saying and doing the exact opposite of what he meant to, especially when his best friend was involved. For example, every time Tsukki got knocked into the other teen today, every fiber of his being wanted to hold him closely and never ever let go again. What he did, however, was shove the poor soul away and complain about the contact. 

_ What was up with all that anyways?  _ Tsukishima wondered. He knew Hinata was clumsy, but he wasn’t used to Kageyama being as blatantly careless. If he didn’t know any better, he’d almost think that they were  _ trying _ to push him and Yamaguchi together.  _ What if they know I like him?  _ He considered.  _ Who am I kidding? I’m such an ass half the time, they probably think I hate him or something.  _

__ If they were doing it on purpose, though, it sure was working. Being within such an unusually close proximity of Yamaguchi all day caused Tsukki’s mild desire to kiss his best friend to escalate to barely-controllable urge. Whenever they found themselves with their faces only an inch or so apart, it was near impossible for Tsukishima to stop himself from thinking about how easy it would be to close that gap. 

_ If I spend too much longer with him today, I might do something stupid.  _ He worried.  _ He’s put up with me this long, but if he knew how I felt it might scare him off for good. Besides, he probably likes that girl more anyways…  _ Tsukishima clenched his fist at the thought that he’d be working with Yachi on a regular basis for the foreseeable future. He didn’t have anything against her, per se. He just didn’t like watching Yamaguchi act all friendly towards people other than himself. Was it selfish? Maybe. Not that he cared. 

  “Tsukki? Are you okay?” Yamaguchi suddenly asked. 

  “Huh? Yeah.” he answered. “Why?”

  “You were staring off angrily into space for a few minutes there.”

_ Shit.  _

  “It’s nothing. Let’s just start practicing so we can pretend we were productive and go home.” Tsukishima wanted nothing more than for this night to end already. 

  Yamaguchi smiled. “Or, ya know, we can actually be productive since we’re stuck here either way.” 

  “That too.”

_ ~Fifteen minutes later~ _

__ “Tsukki, could you maybe hit it back at least once before we leave?” Yamaguchi sighed. 

  “Shut up!” Tsukishima, as it turned out, had a number of things working against him. For one, he sucked at receiving. Two, jump float serves were way more confusing than normal serves. Three, he was already really damn tired from practice. Most of all, though, he was distracted again. He had never watched his friend serving from the other side of the net before. Never realized just how tough of a ball his opponents had been dealing with this whole time.  _ He looks so cool right now… _

__ “You can yell at me all you want  _ after  _ you stop sucking. Now quit whining and hit the ball!” Yamaguchi yelled, tossing the ball up and serving again. 

  Another thing on the list of “stuff Tsukishima would never admit out loud,” was how hot he found it when his friend got bossy like this. Maybe it was the tone in the usually-timid boy’s voice, or the intense look in his eyes, or even the uncharacteristically bold stance he took to show that he was being dead serious. Whatever it was, it made Tsukishima  _ weak,  _ and he couldn’t help but give in to whatever it was the freckled boy wanted. Yamaguchi had his best friend wrapped completely around his finger, and he had no idea about it. 

  Of course, all the willpower in the world couldn’t change the fact that the blond still had no idea how to deal with this kind of serve, and he ended up taking another ball to the face. 

  “What, are you trying to compete with Hinata over who can make the most receives with their face?” Yamaguchi remarked.  _ Is he always this sassy when the others aren’t around?  _ Tsukki wondered. It was all for the best, as he despised the idea of anyone else getting to see his best friend like this. 

  “This is stupid. How am I supposed to get any better at this without any instruction?” Tsukishima grumbled defensively. “It’s not like your receives are any better.” 

  Yamaguchi chuckled and blushed. “I can’t argue with you there. I think I might be even  _ worse _ .” 

_ No you’re not.  _ “Heh, that you are.” 

  Yamaguchi was more than used to his friend’s attitude, so he hardly even registered that he was being insulted and ignored the comment. “I could help you with your serve instead.” He offered. 

  “My serve?”

  “I know that’s not exactly what I was asked to do but…” Yamaguchi stared downwards nervously. “I-I can’t really give any advice about receives, and your serve could use some work so…”

  “My serve isn’t that bad.” Tsukishima huffed indignantly.

  “Tsukki, I have watched you hit to the exact opposite side of the court from where you were aiming more times than I can count.” Yamaguchi pointed out. “I at least want you to get better at  _ something  _ by tomorrow. Sugawara is counting on me!” 

   Tsukishima wasn’t too fond of serving, but at this point anything seemed better than practicing receives. “Fine. But just a normal serve, got it? I’m not jumping.” 

  “Got it.” 

  Tsukishima made his way over to the other side of the court grabbed a ball out of the basket. He felt a sudden pang of sadness as he twirled the sphere in his hands and looked over at Yamaguchi. 

  He hated to say it, since it made him feel like an ass, but it bothered him that there was something his friend could do that he couldn’t. Tsukishima used to take comfort in the idea that his friend was pretty helpless without him—it was nice having a person around who was pathetic enough to resort to wanting someone like him as a friend. Now, though, he couldn't shake the feeling that he depended more on Yamaguchi than the other way around.  _ How much longer until he realizes what terrible friend I am and gets a better one? It’s not like he even needs me anymore.  _

  “Hey, you better not be thinking something depressing!” Yamaguchi snapped him out of it. 

  “What gives you that idea?” Tsukki asked.

  “The fact that you were pouting and staring at me looking depressed? C’mon, serve that ball already so I can help you figure out what’s wrong.” 

_ Let’s get this over with.  _ Tsukishima stepped up towards the edge of the court and lazily tapped the ball over the net. It’s not like they were playing a real match, so there was no need to try hitting it hard. 

  “Tsukki, can you please pretend to care for twenty more minutes?” Yamaguchi didn’t sound angry this time, just upset.  _ Crap. He’s probably worrying about me now.  _

__ “Tch.”  _ Fine, I’ll just have to make this next one better.  _ Tsukki picked up another ball and concentrated on making this serve count. He tossed the ball and tried his best to pretend he was serving in a real match. His stomach flipped when the ball lightly plopped down in an easy spot to receive from.  _ Well shit.  _

  By the way Yamaguchi was struggling not to laugh, any sign that he was upset earlier completely gone, it was clear he’d managed to read Tsukishima like an open book.  _ He can tell I was actually trying that time, I know it. How embarrassing. This is why I hate trying.  _ Tsukki could feel his face heating up against his will, and he silently hoped to any god out there that his blush wasn’t too visible. 

  If Yamaguchi saw it, he wasn’t saying anything. Instead he smiled and picked up a ball, moving to stand at the edge of the court. “Here, watch what I’m doing. Then you try copying me,” the shorter boy instructed before serving the ball. 

_ I thought that’s what I was doing.  _ Tsukishima thought dejectedly. Yamaguchi caught sight of the forlorn look on his companion's face and sighed softly. “What, do you want me to hold your hand and walk you through it like a kid?” He asked jokingly. Tsukishima nodded, averting his eyes to hide his embarrassment. 

  “Tsukki, I was joking.” Yamaguchi informed him. His eyes were wide, and he looked stunned. He wasn’t expecting to be taken seriously. 

  “I wasn’t.” Tsukki replied stubbornly. There was no way he was passing up the excuse to hold his friend’s hand. 

  “If that’s really what you want…” 

  Tsukki waited with bated breath as Yamaguchi moved behind him. He very nearly squeaked as his friend’s hands wrapped around his own, and he could feel the other boy’s chest against his back.  

  “Okay, so first off…”

_   Too close too close this is way too close.  _ He thought. He managed to stay stoic on the outside, but inside he was panicking worse than Yachi.  _ Why are his hands so soft? It should be illegal to be so soft. He’s so warm, too...and why does he smell nice? We’ve been practicing for hours, it shouldn’t be possible to smell this nice. Crap, now my heart is racing. What if he can feel it? I hope he can’t. I could always pretend it’s from practice I guess. But then again, I haven’t actually been doing anything for the past couple minutes.  _

__ Some distant part of Tsukki’s brain was aware that Yamaguchi was giving him instructions, but his mind was long gone. He was limply allowing himself to be pulled along with the right serving motion, concentrating more on his friend’s voice than his actual words. It was over all too quickly, and Tsukishima made an effort not to complain at how empty he felt once Yamaguchi let go of him. 

  “Now try it on your own.” the brunette instructed. 

_ I don’t know how.  _ As cute as Yamaguchi was when he was mad, Tsukishima didn’t feel like getting on his bad side by admitting that he wasn’t listening just now. “Okay.” 

  


  The rest of their private practice was a disaster, as Tsukishima found his mind drifting farther and farther from reality. At some point he spent a full five minutes having the kind of dumb romantic fantasy that a twelve year old girl would have. 

  For years now he’d kept his unnecessary emotions dammed up so they wouldn’t get in his way; but all the soft smiles, excessive compliments, and overly excited “Tsukki’s” had worn away at said dam over time, and the sudden physical contact today finally broke it. He couldn’t deny it any longer, whether he liked it or not. 

  Tsukishima was completely, hopelessly,  _ pathetically _ in love with his annoying best friend. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should really get back to Hinata and Kageyama now


	5. I Saw This in a TV Show Once

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> These dorks actually attempt the whole "make them jealous" strategy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning, this chapter is gonna change POV a few times because if I tried to make a separate chapter for each POV honestly they would each be like 100 words and it would be really weird and gross. It’s not hard to follow though, I mean there’s gonna be big lines indicating each POV switch.

“Wait up!” Yachi heard Yamaguchi’s voice calling her, and stopped walking to turn and face him. It was before practice and they were outside the gym, but fortunately no one else was there yet. 

  “Hi!” She greeted. “Sorry we weren’t able to talk yesterday.” 

  “That’s fine,” Yamaguchi shrugged. “Now that I think about it, I might have forgotten to let you know we were staying after.”

  “Don’t worry, I knew.” Yachi admitted. “So, is this about Kageyama and Hinata?” Well, there went Yachi’s plan to take things one couple at a time. 

  “Yep! That’s why I wanted to talk before practice, so maybe we could try something today.” Yamaguchi told her. 

  “Hmm…” Yachi thought hard, trying to think of something that the other two hadn’t already tried. “Well, since those two and pretty simple-minded, we can’t be too subtle or they won’t notice anything. I say the best chances we have are probably to try tricking or manipulating them.” Yachi knew for fact that dealing with the two denser first years would require a completely opposite strategy of dealing with the two clever ones. 

  “How do we do that?” 

_ I saw this in a TV show once, I think. Could it work in real life?  _ “You could try making one of them jealous.” Yachi suggested. 

  “Huh? How do we do that?” Yamaguchi asked. 

  Yachi took a moment to consider the respective personalities of each of the boys before deciding on the best course of action. “You would definitely have to be the one to do it, Yamaguchi.” 

  “Eh? H-How am I supposed to do something like  _ that _ ?” Yamaguchi was at a loss. 

  “I think if you could occupy all of Hinata’s time and attention today, you might be able to make Kageyama jealous.” Yachi explained.  _ Not to mention if you and Hinata are together all day, Tsukki might get jealous too.  _ She thought. 

  “I don’t like this idea.” Tsukishima, who had walked up beside Yamaguchi midway through the conversation, objected. 

  “What’s wrong with it? I actually think it could work.” Yamaguchi defended the plan. 

  “Stupidity is contagious. You should avoid the orange and just stay with me.” 

_ Has...he always been this obvious? No, this is new. I guess leaving these two alone yesterday really did work.  _ Yachi observed. 

  “But this is the best plan we’ve got! Besides, I like Hinata.” Yachi wished Yamaguchi would choose his words more carefully… “Please?” 

  Tsukishima glared at him for a while, clearly uncomfortable with the idea, before giving in. “Fine, do whatever you want.” 

_ It’s almost weird knowing that Tsukki has such a big soft spot.  _ Yachi thought.  _ It’s also kinda cute, though.  _

  “Yay! You’re the best, Tsukki!” Yamaguchi exclaimed. “I’ll see you guys at practice! I gotta go find someone!” He told them before running off. Yachi wondered where he was going.

* * *

 

__ “Hey, uh, can you help me? N...Nishinoya-senpai?” Yamaguchi called out hesitantly as the second years were making their way to the locker room. 

  Nishinoya stared blankly at him for a few seconds before grinning widely and practically tackling him. “It’s good to see that Shoyo isn’t the only one who recognizes that I’m your greatest senpai!” He laughed, ruffling Yamaguchi’s hair.  _ I never even said greatest... _ the latter thought. “So, what can I do for ya?” 

  Yamaguchi glanced awkwardly at the other second years, who took the hint and told Noya that they would head on to practice without him. Once the two were alone, Yamaguchi felt more comfortable making his request. 

  “Um...i-it’s…” This was a lot harder to put into words than expected. “Y-You seem to get along pretty well with Tsukki, right? Better than everyone else, at least.” 

  Noya eyed him curiously. “Mmm...I guess you could say that.” 

  Nishinoya seemed to be one of very,  _ very  _ few people who weren’t put off by Tsukishima’s unpleasant attitude, so he was the best person to help with Yamaguchi’s current plight. 

  “Well, maybe you noticed, but he’s been more out of it than usual lately.” Yamaguchi said.

  “Tell me about it!” Noya cackled. “That kid’s face has become a ball magnet the past few days, it’s a miracle his glasses aren’t broken.” 

  Yamaguchi couldn’t help giggling at that. “I’m worried that he might be upset about something. I’d try asking him myself, but he’s been acting really weird around me lately. I feel like I might have done something to get on his nerves more than usual…” 

  Noya frowned slightly at that. “That’s strange. So, you want me to bug him and see if I can get him to tell me something?”

  “Yes. Please?” Yamaguchi requested. 

  “I guess I don’t mind helping. I am your senpai after all!” 

  And, with that, they headed off to practice.

* * *

 

_ Go away go away go away go away go away go away go away go away go away go away!  _ Kageyama chanted in his head, glaring intently at his teammate. Anyone looking at him right now could probably see the evil aura surrounding him as he continued his mental mantra. 

  Ever since practice started, Yamaguchi would  _ not  _ stop hanging around Hinata everytime they had a free moment between drills. It wasn’t the first time those two talked together, but normally Kageyama was the one who spent the most time by Hinata’s side.  _ How could that dumbass ignore me like this? Is Yamaguchi more interesting than I am? Is that why Hinata would rather talk to him instead?  _ He wondered. It wasn’t like he actually cared or anything, it was just mildly irritating not having all of the orange-haired boy’s attention. You know, since he was used to it or whatever. 

  Kageyama only lasted about ten more minutes of pretending not to care before he started losing it. How dare someone else take up all of his Hinata’s time! He was the one Hinata was supposed to talk to, and play with, and get excited over, and--wait.  _ Did...I just call him  _ **_my_ ** _ Hinata?  _ He suddenly felt his face heating up, and he shook his head to try and clear his mind.  _ I just meant he’s my volleyball partner, that’s all. Because we’re a duo.  _

__ Back to the issue at hand, though, Kageyama had to find a way to get Hinata’s attention back. How had Yamaguchi done it? Smiling and talking excitedly about volleyball? Kageyama could do that. The next time they had a spare moment, Kageyama tried his best attempt at a smile and walked over to the two chattering boys. 

  “Hey Hinata! Y-You’re doing great today! That last spike was really cool!”  _ Nailed it.  _ Or, at least, Kageyama thought he nailed it.  

  Hinata screamed and jumped back, holding up his arms defensively. “What did I do wrong this time? And what happened to your face?!” 

  “Huh? I was complimenting you, dumbass! And for the last time, this is just my face!” Kageyama yelled, resisting the urge the crush the smaller male’s skull.  _ No, I’m supposed to be playing nice so he stops avoiding me.  _ “I mean...you looked like you were practicing hard, and I thought it deserved some praise...or something.” For the first time, Kageyama found himself regretting his complete lack of ordinary social skills. 

  “Really?” Hinata asked. “You mean it?” Now he was beaming, his arms lowered, a grin spanning his face from ear to ear. It was the cutest thing Kageyama had ever seen. 

  “Mhmm.” Kageyama nodded. He was distracted when he heard Yamaguchi giggle quietly and saw him glance to the side, before making startled sound and averting his eyes. 

  Kageyama turned to see where he was looking, only to see Tsukishima staring at them, the same evil aura around him that had been surrounding Kageyama earlier.  _ Is he jealous or something? Not that I was jealous earlier! But he certainly looks like he is.  _

__ “Oi, shouldn’t you be bugging your friend right about now?” Kageyama asked Yamaguchi. He wasn’t trying to be mean, he just remembered that Yachi told him to keep those two close together at all times. 

  “About that…” Yamaguchi laughed and scratched his neck uncomfortably. They were interrupted by a sudden commotion on the other side of the gym. 

  “Give those back.” 

  “Not until you talk to me~!” 

  “But I have nothing to say.”

  “Then you’ll have nothing to see!” 

  Kageyama very nearly laughed at the sight of Tsukishima helplessly following Nishinoya in circles while the little libero ran around taunting him and waving his glasses around.  _ What’s going on with them?  _

__ “Noya please give him his glasses back. We need to start practice back up.” Sugawara sighed. 

  “But Suga, you don’t understand!”

  “Understand what?” 

  Kageyama watched as Noya ran up to Suga and started whispering something in his ear. Suga nodded before whispering something back, and next thing everyone knew, Suga was calling Daichi and Asahi over, and all three of them left the gym with Noya. 

  “Um...what just happened?” Hinata asked. 

  “Hell if I know.” Kageyama shrugged. 

  Yamaguchi just stared with a perplexed look on his face. 

  “I still can’t see.” Tsukishima complained. 

  It seemed practice wouldn’t be able to start again until everyone got back.  _ I wonder what they’re all talking about.  _ Kageyama wondered, staring at the closed gym door. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More was supposed to happen, but it started getting too long with too many switches so I decided to cut it off halfway through. I think you'll like the next part when I finish it, though XD


	6. What Does Rolling Thunder Have to do With Romance?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The upperclassmen are a mess

  “Why did you drag me out here?” Noya pouted, anxious to get back inside and continue his plan already. Two of his underclassmen were upset, he had to help them! 

  “Just tell these guys what you told me.” Sugawara said. 

  Noya raised a brow at him before crossing his arms and sighing. “Yamaguchi said that Tsukishima was upset and acting all weird around him, so I’m trying to figure out what’s wrong.” 

  “Ooh.” After hearing that, it didn’t take Daichi long to figure out what Suga already had. 

  “Oh what? What am I missing?” Noya asked, bouncing in place from anticipation. 

  “We kind of already know what’s wrong.” Daichi told him. 

  “Eh? I don’t know!” Asahi objected. 

  “That’s why we brought you out here too. We knew once we told Noya, he’d tell you, and we didn’t want to risk him screaming it across the gym.” Suga explained. 

  “Tell Noya what?!” Noya shouted, beginning to lose his mind. 

  “That Tsukishima has a giant crush on Yamaguchi and is doesn’t know how to deal with it. Oh, and that Yamaguchi probably likes him back and Kageyama and Hinata realized it and asked Yachi to help them set the two up.” Suga told him. 

  It was silent for a split second, before a very loud “HUH?!?” was heard from both Noya and Asahi. Afterwards, Sugawara and Daichi took their time in explaining the full story about how the plot to get Yamaguchi and Tsukishima together, and how the other first years were involved, and about that being the reason they made them stay after school together. 

  “How come I was left out of all this?” Asahi asked, a tinge of disappointment in his voice. 

  “Because at the time I needed someone who could help me come up with a plan quickly, not someone who would have a panic attack on the spot.” Sugawara shrugged. 

  Asahi hung his head, not even trying to argue against that. Noya wasn’t satisfied with that answer, though. “What about me, huh? I could have helped!” 

  “It was really just an on the spot kind of thing, I didn’t think it was a big deal.” Suga said defensively. “And what would you have done anyways?” 

  “Hmm….something like…” Noya paused, trying to find the right words. “Like rolling thunder!” 

  The third years all stared at him like he was crazy. “Rolling thunder?” They all asked simultaneously. 

  “Yeah! Do something to make it seem like things are bad, like the ball is dropping, but right before it all crashes and hits the ground, BAM! Romance.” Noya stated proudly. 

  “But...how would you pull that off?” Daichi asked. 

  “I dunno. I didn’t think that far ahead. You guys figure out the rest.” 

  “That was...no help.” Suga sighed. 

  “Maybe we just shouldn’t do anything.” Asahi suggested. 

  “Excuse me?” 

  “Well, our first years are already on the case right? They probably still think this whole thing is, you know, private? And that half the team doesn’t already know about it? And besides, they have a very capable manager on their side. I think it would be nice to see how they handle things by themselves.” Asahi explained himself. “And also...you guys are going into stalker parent mode again and it’s freaking me out.”

  “Fine.” Sugawara agreed. “I guess we can back off a little.”

* * *

**_Meanwhile, in the gym_ **

  “Hey, Yamaguchi, can I talk to you for a second?” Ennoshita asked. With all the third years and Noya gone, practice had halted completely, so he figured now was a good opportunity to get some answers about a few things that were bugging him. The first year nodded and ran over to him. After glancing around, Ennoshita decided to lead Yamaguchi to the storage closet, wanting to avoid being eavesdropped on. 

  “Is something wrong?” the younger questioned. 

  “I was actually going to ask you that.” Ennoshita said. “You seemed a little sad earlier today, and I’ve spent enough time around you to know that it takes a lot to get your spirits down.” 

  “It’s nothing.” Yamaguchi dismissed. Not convincingly, though. 

  “Nothing? Then what were you asking Nishinoya about earlier?” Ennoshita pressed. “You know if you need help, I’m here. I’m your teammate too, you know.” 

  Yamaguchi thought it over for a bit before explaining the whole situation about trying to figure out what was going on with his best friend. Ennoshita had noticed the strange behavior himself, and had actually developed his own little theory about it. 

  “Have you ever considered that he might just have a crush on you?” he proposed. 

  Yamaguchi started laughing almost instantly. “Tsukki? Have a crush on somebody? No way. He hates people who have stupid feelings like that, especially if they don’t act on them. That’s why we’re--” He cut off mid sentence, and the look on his face showed that he might have said more than he should have. 

  “What? What are you two doing?” Ennoshita asked suspiciously. 

  Yamaguchi looked nervous, and spoke in a lowered voice. “Promise you won’t tell anyone?” 

  The second year was suddenly worried about what the first years were up to. “Promise.” 

  “We’re trying to set Kageyama and Hinata up.” Yamaguchi blurted. 

  “...Set them up for what?” Ennoshita didn’t get it. 

  “I-I mean, together. As in, set them up with each other. Like, dating and stuff.” Yamaguchi was pretty red by now, as if just thinking about people dating embarrassed him. Maybe it did.

  Ennoshita nodded. Was that why they were acting so strange earlier?  _ Wait, is that why Yamaguchi stuck around Hinata all day? Was he trying to make Kageyama jealous? That would explain why Kageyama is in such a bad mood.  _ Before Ennoshita could say anything, Yamaguchi startled rambling on again. 

  “E-Except when we were trying to do things alone it wasn’t working, and they were still so oblivious, so we asked Yachi for help, and now we dragged her into all this nonsense and I feel sorta bad because I think we might be stressing her out and I don’t know if she even wants to help or if she’s just trying to be nice, or if she thinks we’ll get mad if she doesn’t help us, or—”

  “Calm down, Yamaguchi.” Ennoshita shushed him. “It’s going to be fine. Tell you what, how about after practice today you, me, Tsukishima, and Yachi all talk together. I can help you settle all this once and for all.” 

  “You can do that?” 

  Ennoshita smirked. “Course I can. Now let’s get back out there before everyone starts questioning what the hell we’re doing in here.”

  “Okay! Thank you!” Yamaguchi smiled.

  Ennoshita Chikara was officially on the case. 


	7. Ennoshita's A Genius!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Hinata is a confused orange and Tsukishima finds a (horrible) way to use Kageyama's jealous nature against him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why am I so bad at picking one story idea and committing to finishing it instead of getting thrown off track by other random ideas?

_ This is getting out of hand.  _ Yachi thought as she stood outside the gym after practice. Apparently Yamaguchi told Ennoshita about everything they’d been planning, and now the second year was insisting on helping. Not that Yachi minded the extra assistance, but it was starting to feel like this secret mission wasn’t secret at all anymore.

  She stayed silent as the two other first years explained all the things they’d already tried on Kageyama and Hinata. Ennoshita listened and seemed to be taking mental note of everything.

  “Maybe you can’t get them to admit their feelings because they don’t realize they have them yet.” Ennoshita suggested. 

_ I hadn’t even thought of that!  _ Yachi thought. 

  “But they’re so obvious about them.” Tsukishima pointed out. 

  “Maybe to you,” Ennoshita admitted. “But it’s possible that they know they feel  _ something  _ for each other, but just aren’t sure what that something is.” 

  “So if we can get them to admit their crushes to themselves, we may be able to get them to admit them to each other. Is that what you’re saying?” Yamaguchi asked. 

  “Exactly.” Ennoshita confirmed. 

  “I can handle Hinata.” Yachi offered. “He and I talk a lot, and he’s usually pretty open with me. I bet I could get something out of him.” 

  The others nodded. “Okay, but what about Kageyama?” Ennoshita asked. 

  “I can do it.” Tsukishima said. The others turned to him in shock.  _ Doesn’t Kageyama hate him the most, though?  _ Sensing everyone’s confusion, Tsukishima continued on to explain himself. “He’ll probably be on high guard around Yamaguchi since he was hanging around Hinata so much today, so that kind of friendly approach won’t work. And besides, I have a plan that’ll surely get him to talk.” 

  Yachi agreed, that did make the most sense. She took note of the look of admiration in Yamaguchi’s eyes after he said that.  _ These two have no right to complain about others being way too obvious…  _

__ “You came up with a plan that fast, Tsukki? You’re amazing!” 

  “Any idiot with half a brain could’ve thought up some simple plan.” Tsukishima shrugged. 

  “O-Oh...” 

_ Sheesh, it’s almost painful watching these two.  _

__ “Okay, so we know what we’re doing tomorrow.” Ennoshita concluded. “If anything goes wrong or if you need anymore help, just let me know.” 

  “Thank you.” the first years all said in unison, Tsukishima a bit less enthusiastically than the other two, before they parted ways for the night.

* * *

 

**_The Next Day_ **

  “Hey, Hinata!” Yachi called out the moment the team took their first break. 

  “What is it?” Hinata asked as he jogged over. 

  “You got a minute to talk?” Yachi asked.

  “Of course! A-At least until the break is over.” Hinata answered. 

  “Right, I’ll try to make it quick.” Yachi took a deep breath. She had no idea how to make Hinata admit anything without being too blunt. If she asked him straight up, he would just deny it. She had to be cautious… “Are you and Kageyama friends?”

  “Huh?” Hinata cocked his head in confusion, but answered anyways. “I sure hope so. He feels like a friend.” 

  “Oh, good. I-I’m just asking because it seems like you two have had a hard time communicating with each other lately.” Yachi said.  _ That’s good. That’s not a lie, exactly.  _

__ “Is it that bad?” Hinata questioned, scratching the back of his head and blushing. 

  “N-No! It’s just, uhm.” Yachi stammered. “I’ll be honest, it’s not so good. You mainly just seem distracted a lot. Any idea what is you keep finding yourself focusing on?”

  Hinata thought for a few seconds. “I guess...Kageyama. He’s a jerk, but he’s just so amazing at volleyball, ya know? I can’t stop staring at him every time we play. Especially his eyes.” 

  “His eyes?”

  “Yeah! I can’t explain it. They’re just...really pretty I guess. Kageyama is really pretty.” Yachi counted about two seconds before Hinata went from mildly blushing to looking like a tomato. “I-I mean, his body is really nice. His form! I-I meant his form! As in his playing! Not him!”

  Yachi hummed. “Then why are you so embarrassed about it?”

  That made Hinata freeze. “B-Because! It’s weird to think of teammate like that.”

  “And how, exactly, do you think of Kageyama?”  _ He’s so close…  _

__ “S-Sometimes I find myself thinking really weird things, like if his hair is as soft as it looks, or what it would be like to hug him, or what he tastes like…” Hinata admitted. 

_ He’s been thinking all of that and still doesn’t realize how he feels? Classic, thick-skulled Hinata.  _

__ “But why do you think about those things?” Yachi asked carefully, afraid she was being too pushy. 

  “I don’t know. I think, maybe...no that’s not possible. He’s my teammate, right? It would be weird if...but what if that’s why I...maybe he also?” Hinata murmured fragments of his thoughts aloud. 

  “Hinata?” Yachi tried to snap him out of it.  _ Did I break him? _

__ “Yachi-san. I think I might like Kageyama too much…”

* * *

 

**_Meanwhile_ **

  As if Kageyama wasn’t already upset enough about Yachi calling Hinata away, he somehow found himself stuck next to Tsukishima. The bastard annoyed him to no end—Kageyama would go so far as to say he was even more annoying than Hinata and Nishinoya combined. 

  “What do you want, four-eyes?” he growled under his breath. 

  “Geez, I haven’t even said anything yet.” the blond looked just as uncomfortable around Kageyama as Kageyama felt around him.  _ Why doesn’t he just take a hint and piss off?  _

  “If it wasn’t about to be some shitty insult, I’ll be amazed.” Kageyama rolled his eyes. 

  “Then I guess you’ll be mind blown right now.” Tsukishima responded. “I actually came to ask you a question.” 

  At this point, Kageyama had to admit, he was a bit intrigued. “And what might that be?” 

  “What do you think about Hinata?” Tsukishima asked. 

_ Hinata? What the hell does the dumbass have to do with anything?  _ “I think he’s a clumsy idiot, why?” 

  “Oh, no reason. What would you consider your relationship with him to be?”

_ What kind of weird fucking question is that??  _ “He’s my teammate, what else would he be?”

  “So you don’t consider him your friend?”

  “Not really.”

  “So you don’t like him?” 

_ What’s up with this?  _ “I didn’t say that.” 

  “So you do like him?”

  “I never said that either.”

  “Well, how do you feel about him then?” 

  “I…don’t know.” In truth, Kageyama couldn’t explain how he felt about Hinata. He found him annoying, that was for sure. But he didn’t dislike him. He supposed he prefered being around Hinata more than just about anyone else, and lately he had noticed a slight sickness in his stomach whenever he was separated from the short middle blocker for too long. _Is that how you feel when you like someone? I’ve never really been fond of anyone before, so I have no clue._ “Why the hell are you asking me all this, anyways?”

  “No reason. Just making sure you weren’t all attached to him or anything like that. I mean, surely you’re not the protective or jealous type, right?” Kageyama didn’t like the malicious tone in which those words were being said. 

  “Over the dumbass? Of course not.” Kageyama denied.  _ Unless getting mad everytime someone else touches or talks to him and wanting to kill that person counts as being protective or jealous.  _ “Again, why do you care?”

  “Just making sure it won’t bother you.”

  “What won’t bother me?” Kageyama narrowed his eyes suspiciously, wishing he could punch the smirk off the taller boy’s face. 

  “I’m going to ask Hinata out.” Tsukishima answered casually. 

  “You...you’re gonna do _what?!”_  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll try and edit this soon, I think I was a little too eager to get it posted already ^-^;


	8. This Was Supposed to be Part of the Last Chapter But I Got Lazy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Exactly as the title says.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that took so long! AP testing and migraines hit me like a truck! On the bright side I'm already done with the next chapter too. Yay, double update!

  “What do you think he's saying?” 

  “I don't know.” 

  “It looks like Kageyama’s getting mad. Should we stop him?” 

  “You know your friend better than I do. Do you think he knows what he's doing?” 

  “....I guess.” Yamaguchi sighed. It wasn't that he didn't trust Tsukishima’s ability to come up with a good plan. He just didn't trust Kageyama not to deck the cocky blond in the face. 

  “Don't worry, everything’ll be okay.” Ennoshita assured him. 

  “Yeah, you're probably right.” Yamaguchi smiled. 

 

  “You're gonna do what?!” An angry shout interrupted their conversation. 

_ Uh-oh.  _

  Yamaguchi couldn't hear what Tsukki said after that, but whatever it was made Kageyama respond with 

  “Don't you even think about it you—” followed by some rather choice words that Yamaguchi would rather pretend he never heard. 

__ The entire team snapped their heads around to stare, causing Kageyama to apologize awkwardly and drag Tsukishima out of the room. 

_ Oh Tsukki, what have you done this time? _

* * *

 

 

__ Kageyama was confused. No, dumbfounded. No, completely and utterly  _ perplexed _ . Why the hell would this blond asshole ask out Hinata? It made no sense. If Kageyama would calm down for long enough to remind himself that Tsukishima had a very blatant crush on  _ not  _ Hinata, he may have gotten a little suspicious about it. Unfortunately, Kageyama was Kageyama, so calming down and thinking was the last thing he was going to do. 

  “Oh? Did I make the king angry? I thought you said you didn’t care~” 

  “I don’t care! I just don’t want you anywhere near my Hina—I-I mean Hinata!”  _ I don’t care, do I? Why the hell would I?  _ “He deserves someone better than you anyways.” Kageyama muttered. 

  “Like who?” 

  “I don’t know! Someone who actually cares about volleyball and can help him improve and give him anything he needs to do his best, and who understands how he feels and thinks and—”

  “So basically, you.” Tsukishima cut him off. 

  “Huh? Where the hell did you get that from?” 

  “Why won’t you just admit that you like him?” Tsukki sighed. 

  “Because I don’t!” Kageyama insisted. “Shut up.”  _ Just because I think I’d be perfect for him doesn’t mean I actually like him like that!  _

__ “Then why can’t I ask him out?” 

  “Because—” Kageyama didn’t know.  _ I don’t like Hinata, I don’t. I don’t care at all how he feels about me or any of that crap. So why do I hate the idea of him being with someone else so much?  _ “Because he…” Kageyama groaned. Maybe he could keep lying to Tsukishima, but he knew lying to himself was futile.  _ Fine, maybe I like him a little bit...  _ “Because he’s mine, okay? Mine. Back off.” 

  Tsukki laughed. “Ah, so he finally admits it. My work here is done.” And with that, he turned to leave. Before he could get away, though, Kageyama stopped him. 

  “You know,” he said. “I don’t know what game you’re playing here, but don’t think I don’t know about your little crush.” Satisfied that he won this round, Kageyama walked back into the gym before the blond could try to seize the last word.

* * *

 

  From where Yachi was standing, practice couldn’t get much more awkward. Hinata was too embarrassed to look at Kageyama after their talk, and Kageyama seemed to be making just as much of an effort to avoid Hinata. Tsukishima was going to great lengths to avoid looking at Yamaguchi while he was playing, and Yachi didn’t miss the way he blushed every time his eyes strayed. Yamaguchi, on the other hand, was trying  _ very  _ hard to get Tsukishima’s attention, and Nishinoya was struggling to comfort him when it didn’t work. 

_ They’re a mess.  _ Yachi groaned softly.  _ This is bad. If I can’t fix things between them all soon, they’ll never focus on volleyball! _

 

  As always, Yamaguchi and Tsukishima headed off in the same direction together after practice. For a while Yachi watched them go, before Ennoshita approached her. 

  “Hey, Yachi.” 

  “Yes?” She looked up at him. 

  “Why don’t you go tell them to spend the night together?” Ennoshita suggested. 

  “Hm? Why?” Yachi asked. 

  “You’re trying to set them up aren’t you?” 

  “H-How’d you know?” 

  “Noya texted me the second practice ended.” 

  “O-Oh.”

_ Noya-san knows, too?! This is getting insane. Who  _ **_doesn’t_ ** _ know?  _

  “Anyways,” Ennoshita continued. “Judging by the weird way those two have been acting around each other, I think this whole proximity angle is working great. Don’t let them spend a minute more away from each other than you absolutely have to.”

  “Y-Yes! You’re right. Thank you!” Yachi shouted before running off. 

She chased after the two boys, catching up and telling them “Hey, why don’t you spend the night together?”

  “H-Huh?” Yamaguchi questioned. 

  “W-Well tomorrow’s the weekend, a-and you’re already heading in the same direction. M-Maybe if you spent more time together thinking about it you can figure out the Hinata-Kageyama situation.” Yachi wasn’t sure that what she was saying made sense, but she needed to make those two stay together. Ennoshita was right. She could feel how close Tsukishima was getting to his breaking point, and Yamaguchi was getting increasingly concerned about his best friend’s behavior. 

_ If I could get them to spend an entire night together… _

__ “Okay.” Tsukishima shrugged in agreement. “I don’t see why not.” 

  Yachi could see the awkwardness written all over his face. He was afraid that too much time around Yamaguchi would make him lose his composure, but too much time away from his would make him lose his friendship entirely. 

_ He’s surprisingly insecure. Maybe it’s because he doesn’t have any other friends... _

  Yamaguchi looked surprised. “Are you sure? I wouldn’t be imposing?” 

  “At this point I think my family likes you more than me. I doubt they’d mind you coming over again.” Tsukishima affirmed. 

  “Okay!” 

  Yachi smiled at how excited Yamaguchi looked to not be ignored this time. She couldn’t help but feel a wave of optimism as the two of them walked off together.  _ They’re smart.  _ She thought confidently.  _ I’m sure they’ll figure things out all by themselves.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm almost tempted to make a spin-off story where this plan fails hardcore and things get awkward and dramatic because how funny would that be?


	9. Mine Too

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two idiots try to figure things out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: I wrote this chapter before I even wrote the first one. I BEEN PLANNIN THIS FOR AGES.

  “I don’t understand it. After all we’ve done, how are those two still not together?” Tsukishima groaned, flopping backwards onto his bed. So they finally made Kageyama and Hinata notice their feelings for each other, yet nothing happened. They just acted all awkward and avoided each other all day! Sort of like how Tsukishima was avoiding looking at Yamaguchi right now. 

  “I don’t know.” Yamaguchi shrugged, laying on the floor next to the bed. Since he was invited over last second, he didn't have any of his own clean clothes and borrowed Tsukishima's instead. They weren't _that_ big on him, but they were big enough to be unspeakably cute. Nothing in this world could have prepared Tsukki for the sight of his best friend in an oversized t-rex pajama shirt.  _Nothing._

  Both boys stared at the ceiling, deep in thought. “Maybe they’re just scared?” Yamaguchi spoke up again after a while. 

  “Of what?”

  “Well,” Yamaguchi began fiddling with his hands, unsure of how to word things right. “It would be scary admitting your feelings to your crush if you thought they didn’t feel the same way. They probably both think the other doesn’t like them.”

  Tsukishima hummed, mulling it over. “Yeah, you’re probably right about that. So, what about you?”

  “Me?”

  “If you liked someone, would you tell them?” Tsukki inquired.

  “No way!” the other blurted without a second of thought. “I-I mean—”

  “Sounds like you know from experience.” Yamaguchi was afraid his friend would come to that conclusion. “So I’m guessing that means you like someone?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Hmm. Same.”

  They both stayed silent as they let each other’s words sink in. _He likes someone…_ They fully processed simultaneously. Out of sheer awkwardness, they kept their eyes glued to the ceiling, not wanting to look at each other.

  “Tsukki?”

  “Yes?”

  “Wanna play a game?” Yamaguchi proposed.

  “What kind of game?”

  “We both give each other hints about who our crush is. First one to guess the right name wins.”

   The brunette regretted his words almost the second he said them. _Why? Why would I bring that up?_ He mentally slapped himself. The longer his friend stayed silent, the faster and louder his heart seemed to beat, and just as it got to the point where he could swear it was echoing throughout the room, he heard,

  “Okay. You first.”

  Yamaguchi was torn between relief at getting a response, and dread about having to commit to this game now. In truth, Tsukishima was equally nervous. Part of him was terrified that this game would take a turn for the worst. Still, they both made the decision to play, because they both had the same hope: _maybe he’ll describe me._

“They’re really tall.” Yamaguchi said. _Oh no, that was way too obvious. What have I done?_

“Cool. Mine’s also tall I guess, but still shorter than me.” Tsukki responded.

  “Mine’s really smart.”

  “Mine too.”

  “And really cool.”

  “Yeah, mine too.”

  “Hmm...they’re really good at a lot stuff, but for some reason they always underestimate themself. Like, they don’t realize how amazing they are.”

  Tsukki paused for a moment before saying, “Yeah, mine too.”

  “Tsukki, you can’t just keep saying ‘mine too’” Yamaguchi sighed.

  “Well, you keep describing my guy perfectly. It’s not my fault.”

  Both boys blushed madly as they realized what Tsukishima just said: “ _my_ **_guy_ ** _”_

  “So...it’s a boy then?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Mine too.” the freckled boy chuckled.

  “Hypocrite.” Tsukki mumbled. “Let’s see...he’s a brunette.”

   Yamaguchi's heart nearly stopped at that. He didn't want to jump to conclusions, but...

  “O-Oh. Umm, mine’s blond.”

   Tsukishima suddenly found he had a lump in his throat, and struggled to talk. 

  “He has freckles.”

   Yamaguchi felt he might throw up. 

  “He has glasses.”

   Tsukishima thought his heart was going to beat out of his chest. 

  “He’s great at serving.”

    _He can't be._

  “He’s great at blocking.”

    _Is he?_

  “He’s my best friend.”

  “Mine too.”

    _He's definitely talking about me._ They concluded simultaneously. 

  The room went dead silent after that. Neither boy trusted their voice not to shake. Their heart rates were out of control, and they each felt like they could throw up any second. Neither of them were convinced they weren’t dreaming. The whole situation felt too surreal. Too impossible. Too...easy. After all the years they spent longing, and pining, and hurting, this silly game was all they ever had to do? How stupid could they be? 

  “Kei Tsukishima.” Tsukki eventually interrupted the silence.

  “What?”

  “The terms were, the first person to guess the right name wins. Well, did I get it right?” For the first time, the blond sat upright, looking down so he could see Yamaguchi.

  “Y-Yeah. You did.” The aforementioned teen confirmed nervously.

  “Well then? What the hell are you still doing on the floor? Get up here.” Tsukki gestured to the spot of the bed next to him. Yamaguchi nodded fervently and did as told. “I do get a prize for winning, right?”

  “I-I guess?” Yamaguchi stuttered. “I don’t really have anything with me thou—"

  “A kiss will do.” Tsukishima interrupted him.

  “Eh?! Like...o-on the lips?” Yamaguchi asked incredulously.

  “Um, duh?”

  “O-Okay...that’s fair.” Yamaguchi swallowed thickly, waiting for his friend to say he was joking. However, when he looked into blond’s eyes he could tell that he was serious. _Here goes nothing then…_

In a rather awkward gesture, Yamaguchi quickly pressed his lips against Tsukki’s, pulling away almost as soon as he made contact.

  “What was that supposed to be?” the taller boy complained.

  “A kiss? Sort of? I-I dunno.” Yamaguchi sputtered. He had no idea what he was doing; it wasn’t like he ever kissed anyone before!

  “Pathetic. Let me try.” Tsukishima grumbled, grabbing his friend by the back of the head and kissing him—the right way, this time. That first real kiss was soft and light, almost hesitant as he worried that it would be rejected. Once Yamaguchi kissed him back, though (or at least he attempted to) he gained a little more confidence and tried kissing him a bit harder. Taking the lack of resistance as a sign to keep going, he repeated this action over and over, eventually daring to deepen the kiss.

  This time when they separated, both boys were panting softly, blushes evident on their cheeks.  

  “H-How’d you know...how to do that?” Yamaguchi asked, still catching his breath. Tsukki blushed harder and averted his gaze. “Ah, I get it. You looked it up, huh?”

  “W-Well one of us needed to know how to do it, a-and obviously you didn’t so…” never in a million years did Yamaguchi even think to imagine how cute the blond sounded when he was stuttering in embarrassment. This was definitely something he wanted to hear again sometime.

  “So...does that mean you’ve been planning to kiss me?” he asked.

  “So what if I was?”

  Yamaguchi began to chuckle. “Awww, Tsukki! How long have you wanted to kiss me for~?”

  “I don’t know, a month? Okay maybe two. Three. A year.” Tsukishima lied. Yamaguchi eyed him suspiciously. “Fine, since middle school…”

  “Whoa, really?” Yamaguchi gasped, his eyes widening. He wasn’t expecting that! “That long?”

  “Ugh, yes. I know I probably should’ve said something to you way sooner, but...I was worried I’d scare you off. It was already enough of miracle that you ever put with me in the first place _without_ me creeping you out by telling you I liked you. I guess I was just terrified of losing you…” Tsukishima admitted in a moment of seriousness. “And don’t even think about telling anyone I just said that!”

  Yamaguchi couldn’t help the string of giggles that spilled from his lips. “You’re so cute when you get all soft like this, Tsukki,” he teased.

  “...Shut the hell up, Yamaguchi.”

  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MY BOYS FINALLY DID IT


End file.
